Judge allows Landon Webb access to visitors, Internet

A 25-year-old man from Nova Scotia who has been deemed incompetent after a request by his parents will be allowed to challenge that ruling in court.

Landon Webb is being ordered to remain in a care facility for now, but some of the restrictions his parents have put in place have been lifted.

“It feels great to actually speak my mind,” Webb said.

Webb hasn't been able to use a phone, access the Internet or even have visitors in recent weeks.

“I feel like I'm the puppet and my parents are the puppeteer,” he said.

But that could change, now that a judge has ruled that Webb's challenge to the Nova Scotia Incompetent Persons Act can go ahead.

“I hope to get this guardianship on me lifted and change the legislation for myself and for my kids, and for all the other people out there that maybe are going through the same thing I'm going through,” Webb said.

He was declared legally incompetent five years ago. His parents say he has an intellectual disability and cannot make his own decisions.

He disagrees.

The recent ruling means Webb once again has access to a phone, the Internet and visitors, and that means he'll be able to spend more time with his girlfriend and three young boys.

“The first boy is four-and-a-half, and the other one is 19 months and the other one is five months, and they're the world to me,” Webb said.

While no one from the provincial government was available to comment on camera, an emailed statement says: “The Department of Justice has agreed to review this legislation and looking at what other jurisdictions have done across the country.”

“The legislation itself just cannot be considered a serious piece of 21st century human rights legislation, it has to go,” said Dalhousie law professor Archie Kaiser.

That’s a feeling shared by Webb, and the supporters he's gained both here in the Maritimes and around the world.

“I was almost in tears because people (are) reaching out to me that don't even know me, and they're being so kind and generous,” Webb said.

CTV News was unsuccessful in attempts to reach Webb's parents. His case will be heard in court next April. Until then, he's hoping this is the first step toward a new life.